


Nobody better to lose to

by Rosetylars



Series: Cricverse [13]
Category: Cricket RPF, Sports RPF
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-24
Updated: 2020-07-24
Packaged: 2021-03-05 06:40:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25480069
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rosetylars/pseuds/Rosetylars
Summary: The 2019 BBL final: Stars vs Renegades.
Relationships: Aaron Finch/Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis/Adam Zampa
Series: Cricverse [13]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1755766
Comments: 12
Kudos: 10





	Nobody better to lose to

**Author's Note:**

> This story is preceded by [Made sense eventually,](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24856348) [Lost in translation,](https://archiveofourown.org/works/25125406) and [Don't say it's over.](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23541901)
> 
> However, it can be read on its own :)

The Renegades squad only had one day off after their home semi-final win over the Sixers. The final was scheduled on Sunday afternoon, at the newly renamed Marvel Stadium, between the Renegades and the Stars. The lack of a long run up to the match meant that Glenn and Aaron couldn’t get too jittery about it.

Glenn arrived home from Hobart while Aaron was already out, preparing for his semi-final later that evening. Glenn stayed up to watch the match on TV, and once it was over and the ‘Gades had won, he dozed on the couch until Aaron came home and carried him to bed.

“Sorry, I wanted to stay awake,” Glenn mumbled.

Aaron carefully deposited him on the bed, pressing a kiss to his forehead. “You’ve had a long day with the early flight,” he acknowledged, changing into some sleepwear.

“Congratulations, baby. You played well,” Glenn said, desperately fighting his sleepiness.

Aaron smiled softly. “Thanks, bub. I would’ve liked to stay out there for longer. It got bloody tight at the end,” he admitted.

Glenn nodded. Kane and Dan Christian had managed to make up the winning runs for the Renegades with one ball to spare. 

Aaron headed into the ensuite to brush his teeth, and get ready to join Glenn in bed. Once he was finished, Glenn pulled back the covers for him.

“You looked hot out there,” Glenn grinned.

Aaron gave him a disbelieving look, eyes shining with fondness. “I couldn’t hit one six. It was an ugly innings.”

Glenn shrugged. “You won a semi-final, Aaron. And now we’re enemies,” he teased.

Aaron laughed softly, running a hand back through Glenn’s hair, which was already messed up from his impromptu nap on the couch earlier in the night. “You’ll never be my enemy, bub. Even if it does still hurt me that you defected.”

Glenn laughed. “I played for the ‘Gades for one season, Aaron. And it’s hardly defecting if I stay within our city,” he pointed out.

Aaron pouted. “Still hurts,” he said childishly.

Glenn rolled his eyes fondly, shifting to lean in and kiss the frown off of his lover’s face.

Soon, Glenn’s eyes were drooping shut, and Aaron pressed light kisses along his cheekbones, wrapping him up in a cuddle.

As they fell asleep, Aaron smiled to himself. The Big Bash final could not have worked out any better for the pair of them. 

***  
As was their tradition whenever they played together, Aaron and Glenn drove to Marvel Stadium together. Glenn was bouncing his leg with nerves in the passenger seat, and when they parked in the car park underneath the stadium, Aaron put a gentle hand on his knee to calm the movement.

“Nervous, bub?”

“Naturally,” Glenn admitted with a little smile. “The club’s finals record isn’t great. It’ll be talked about.”

Aaron nodded. “That’s okay, let them say what they want to say. It’s one match, and at the end of the night, one of us will be a championship captain,” he smiled.

Maxi grinned. “It’s exciting,” he agreed.

Aaron leant across the car’s centre console to give Glenn a kiss. They got a little carried away, deepening the kiss and pashing until they were both breathless.

A knock on the window made them spring apart so quickly that Glenn hit his head painfully on the roof. 

“Fuck!” He swore, looking across Aaron to see what had made the noise.

Outside the driver’s window were Adam and Marcus, in their Stars tracksuits, looking comfortable and ready to go. They were both laughing, having successfully frightened their older teammates. Adam and Marcus headed towards the locker room, after that, giving Glenn and Aaron time alone. As they walked, Marcus had his arm around Adam’s shoulders, and Adam was tucked perfectly into his side. 

“That just makes me realise I’m gonna miss you,” Glenn admitted.

“We’ve spent a lot longer apart than just a match,” Aaron reasoned. 

Glenn still pouted. “Still too long.”

Aaron just laughed, leaning over to press a kiss to Glenn’s forehead. “Drinks together afterwards, no matter the result?” Aaron suggested. 

“Sounds perfect,” Glenn agreed. 

***  
Aaron walked Glenn to the away change rooms, and they shared one last kiss at the doorway before Aaron left. 

As Aaron pulled away, Glenn followed, pressing several quick kisses to Aaron’s lips, making the older man giggle. 

From inside the locker room, Pete called out, “Give it a rest, boys!”

“It’s a spy!” Adam chimed in. 

Aaron laughed, giving the boys inside a wave. “Fine, I’m leaving, good luck fellas.”

Glenn gave Aaron one last peck before he left. “Good luck,” Glenn called after him. 

Aaron blew a kiss over his shoulder as he headed to the home change room. 

Glenn put his bag down at his locker, and Nic Maddinson made a whip cracking noise. Glenn rolled his eyes, grinning fondly. 

“They’re in love, mate, give Maxi a break,” Marcus told Nic with a cheeky smile. 

“Says you,” Nic protested, looking pointedly at Adam, who was sitting comfortably in Marcus’ lap. 

Marcus just shrugged, pressing soft kisses into the back of Adam’s neck. 

Maxi smiled. He was so bloody fond of his team. 

***  
Glenn always had butterflies in his stomach when he was in the middle for a coin toss against Aaron. Aaron offered his hand for a handshake, but Glenn just pulled him in for a quick hug. They were both grinning like idiots when they pulled apart. 

Glenn won the toss and chose to bowl, wishing Aaron good luck. 

Aaron and Marcus Harris opened the batting for the Renegades, but both fell quite cheaply, for 13 and 12 respectively. Aaron was run out, and boyfriend Glenn cringed for him, but captain Glenn was delighted, because they had gotten out the most dangerous opposition player. 

Glenn would make it up to him at home, anyway. 

Their top five all went cheaply, but a strong fightback from Cooper and Dan Christian guided the home side to a total of 5/145.

In the innings break, the Stars boys were thrumming with excitement. They knew they could chase it down if they stayed focused and executed well. 

The Stars could not have asked for a better opening partnership. For thirteen whole overs, Stoin and Ben Dunk batted together. They were cruising, playing good shots, until Marcus was beaten by a great ball by Boyce. They were 1/93 at the fall of the first wicket, with seven whole overs up their sleeve to chase down the remaining runs. It was totally under control. Even Zamps wasn’t too disappointed with Marcus’ wicket - he had made 39 from 38, and the partnership was brilliant. 

Petey went out to bat at three, but just three balls later, he was dismissed for a duck. 2/94 was still a good score - they had time and wickets to spare. 

Glenn went out to join Ben Dunk in the middle, calm, intent to steady the innings and see the Stars home. 

But then Dunk fell, finishing on a well made 57 from 45. They could still do this. 

The very next ball, though, Glenn’s shot didn’t come off the bat correctly, and he was caught. He had made just one run, and burnt six balls doing so. 

4/99, with just under five overs to go. Glenn’s chest tightened, but he told himself to have faith in Maddo and Gotchy. They were more than capable of fixing this. 

Maddo fell for six runs from seven balls. And then Seb was dismissed, the very next ball. 6/108, with just 17 balls remaining. 

The Stars needed a miracle. 

Bravo was dismissed in the same over. 7/112. 

They needed 33 from the final two overs.

Zamps and Jackson Bird put on five runs from the second last over, and Glenn’s heart sank. They needed 28 from the final over. It was almost impossible. 

1\. 2. 1. 6. 4. 0.

They had fallen 13 runs short. But Aaron had just won his first BBL title. Glenn felt like the dictionary definition of ‘mixed emotions’ right then. 

As the teams exchanged handshakes, Aaron sought out Glenn and wrapped him up in a hug, in the middle of Marvel Stadium. 

“Sorry, bub,” Aaron said gently, cupping the back of Maxi’s neck lovingly. 

“I’m happy for you,” Glenn said honestly. “We’ll celebrate tonight.”

Aaron squeezed Glenn’s hip before continuing on to shake hands with the rest of the Stars boys. 

***  
Once the on-field formalities were complete, the Stars went into the meeting room for a quick post-mortem. 

The coaches didn’t need to point out that they had let it slip. The boys all knew. Maxi said a few words, thanking the boys for their efforts the entire season. They had done better than six other teams all season, and that’s what Glenn tried to focus on. 

It still hurt to lose a final, though. Adam was sitting between Marcus’ legs, Marcus’ hands linked around his waist, and they both looked heartbroken. They loved the club just as much as Glenn did. 

After their meeting, the coaches brought out the esky and Maxi cracked open his first beer, heading over to sit beside Marcus and Adam. 

“I should’ve stayed out there longer, the big collapse started when I got out,” Marcus murmured, heartbroken.

Glenn frowned, squeezing Marcus’ shoulder. “No, Stoin, you were brilliant. The collapse wasn’t your fault - we all could have been better. We can’t dwell on it, it’ll kill us. We’re gonna win the damn thing next year. Come on, let’s have a drink,” he suggested.

Marcus kissed Adam at the juncture of his shoulder and neck, and squeezed the younger man's waist. “Come on, Adsy, he’s right.”

Adam nodded, standing up, turning within the space of Marcus’ legs so that he could lean down and give Marcus a soft kiss. 

***  
With a beer and some loud music, the initial sting of disappointment wore off for the Stars boys, and it wasn’t long before Kane knocked on the Stars’ locker room door to invite them all in for a beer.

They all headed to the home change rooms, and it was immediately clear that the vibe in there was brilliant. The Renegades had put their trophy and medals away before the Stars boys arrived, which was a nice touch - Glenn knew Aaron was behind that one.

As soon as Glenn met Aaron’s eyes across the room, his heart filled with warmth.

Aaron was holding out a beer for him already, but Glenn decided it was more important that he walk over to him, grab either side of Aaron’s jaw and kiss him, not caring who saw. 

Aaron chuckled, returning the kiss happily.  
“Are you disappointed?” Aaron asked gently, pressing their foreheads together.

“We all were, but I’m so happy for you,” Glenn replied honestly. “If it’s not us, I’m glad it’s you.”  
Aaron smiled, touched, leaning in for another peck momentarily.

An assistant coach of the Renegades ordered some pizzas, and both teams enjoyed the festivities.

Throughout the night, Aaron and Glenn both spoke to a lot of players and staff members. They had their own conversations, but they were either sitting with their legs tangled, or had their fingers interlaced.

At one point, Glenn and Aaron were sitting at Aaron’s locker, and Glenn was beside him, so close that he was almost in the older man’s lap. Marcus came over and plonked himself on the ground in front of them, pulling Adam to sit between his legs. Adam fit perfectly in the space of Marcus’ front.

Aaron couldn’t help but bring it up. “Marcus, credit to you, mate, you and Kane haven’t gotten in trouble at all today,” he teased.

Marcus groaned, blushing. Adam laughed heartily.

“That was one time,” Marcus protested.

Adam turned to him, pulling a face. “It was twice,” he pointed out.

Glenn tried to count their altercations on his fingers. “The broken glass,” he began, and Marcus groaned.

“Please, no, that was so embarrassing,” Marcus protested.

Adam chuckled softly. “Ended up with us together, though,” he pointed out.

“And the hulk thing,” Aaron added.

Marcus rolled his eyes fondly. “That was so stupid, he didn’t even get me out!”

Adam chuckled, at that. “You boys need to sort out your issues.”

“I have NO issues with Kane,” Marcus declared.

“Whatever you say,” Adam replied, reaching up behind himself to pat Marcus’ cheek.

***  
Pete, being his usual angelic self, had only consumed a couple of beers at the beginning of the evening, so when the breathalyser came out, he was zero. He offered to drop Glenn and Aaron home.

Aaron and Glenn both sat in the backseat, making Pete laugh. 

“I feel like your servant, with you both back there,” Pete pointed out.

“Maxi would get separation anxiety if either of us sat in the front,” Aaron teased, making Glenn scoff.

“Petey and I just lost a final, Aaron. You’re gonna sit here and cuddle me, and you’re not gonna complain,” Glenn declared.

“Yes, boss,” Aaron teased, pressing a kiss to Glenn’s temple.

Pete looked at them in the rear-view mirror, laughing softly. “I like it so much better when you two are together,” Pete declared.

Aaron sighed, pulling Glenn closer. “I do, too,” he agreed.

He hoped that he and Glenn were past all of their issues, and this time, things would last.

**Author's Note:**

> This story is followed by [Our stars will fall...](https://archiveofourown.org/works/22506697) and [Champagne and lost sleep.](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26693755)
> 
> ***  
> Thank you for reading!


End file.
